Business Happenings - January 2022
Now Open
Sweetie Couture recently hosted a grand opening at Mercantile on Morris, 2212 Morris Ave., Suite 107, bringing hand-selected apparel, home goods, beauty and wellness products to customers downtown in time for holiday shopping. “Sweetie Couture was curated for modern women who love to incorporate unconventional elements in every facet of their lives,” owner Tunya Humphrey said. Sweetie Couture selects all of its products from local and global independent brands and looks for products made in small batches, women-owned businesses and ethical, eco-friendly items, according to a news release from Orchestra Partners, the Birmingham firm that developed the mixed-used Mercantile on Morris project.
Marshal Automotive, 1637 Forestdale Blvd., recently became a U-Haul neighborhood dealer, according to a news release from U-Haul U-Haul International. The facility will offer U-Haul trucks, trailers, towing equipment, moving supplies and in-store pickup for boxes. 205-791-6700
Top Dog Birmingham, 2222 Fifth Ave. S. in Southside, is now open and offers grooming, day care and boarding services for dogs. 205-201-4782
Coming Soon
Smith & Co., a precision CNC machining startup, will invest $2.56 million to open a facility at 3116 Fourth Ave. S. near Lakeview to serve the defense, aerospace and automotive industries, according to a Nov. 22 news release from Birmingham Business Alliance. The company plans to hire 54 new employees over the next three years with an average wage of more than $68,000, the release states. Founder and CEO Robert Smith said the company will create and manufacture a variety of commercial parts. The 7,500-square-foot facility will have 3D metal printing capabilities, as well as carbon fiber and nylon. In October, the Birmingham Industrial Development Board agreed to abate noneducational ad valorem and sales and use taxes for 10 years for the project. 205-582-1214
SOCU Southern Kitchen & Oyster Bar, a popular restaurant in Mobile, plans to open a location at The Pizitz Food Hall, 1821 Second Ave. N., in early 2022, according to media reports. Erica Barrett is the owner and executive chef and owner of the eatery, which specializes in seafood and updated versions of traditional Southern dishes.
Renovations and Relocations
The clothing boutique basic. and the craft candy maker Honeycreeper Chocolate, both formerly located on Morris Avenue, opened a new shared space Dec. 4 at 2214 Second Ave. N. between Bamboo and Le Fresca restaurants, according to a news release from the retailers. Donating 5% of its sales to the Southern Poverty Law Center and Human Rights Watch, basic. sells “slow fashion” and ethical clothing.
New Ownership
As part of a new community development initiative designed to offer healthy food options and provide jobs for underserved Birmingham-area residents, The Worship Center Christian Church, 100 Derby Parkway, has purchased and assumed operation of the Kale Me Crazy superfood café located at 1831 28th Ave. S. in Homewood, according to a Nov. 1 news release from the church. “At The Worship Center, we believe in healthy living and in providing healthy options to help people live their best life,” pastor Van Moody said. Based in Decatur, Georgia, Kale Me Crazy is a franchise that offers healthy juices, smoothies, salads and wraps and has locations in Texas, California, Colorado, Florida and other states. 205-451-1750
569 Shades Creek LP — a partnership between Fairway Investments LLC in Birmingham and Pope & Land Enterprises Inc. in Atlanta — recently announced it had purchased Brookwood Office Center from Preferred Apartment Communities Inc. for $55 million. The 169,489 square foot building, located at 569 Brookwood Village, was built in 2007, according to a news release from the partners. The anchor tenant is Kinder Morgan, an energy infrastructure company. Other tenants include PricewaterhouseCooper, Surgical Care Affiliates and Merrill Lynch. Colliers will continue to manage and lease the property. The office building is adjacent to the Brookwood Village Mall and Macy’s, which the Fairway Investments, Pope & Land and Colliers teams purchased earlier this year, according to the release. 205-802-7202
New Construction
D&A Companies — a real estate, architecture, and construction firm based in New York City — announced in November it will develop The Tramont, a boutique collection of high-end residences, at 2222 Arlington Ave. S. near the historic Highland Park and Redmont Park neighborhoods, according to a news release from the developer. D&A is partnering with Five Stone Group and Ingram & Associates on the project. The Tramont will offer 28 apartments with a mix of one-, two- and three-bedroom units. Construction is scheduled to begin in the second quarter of 2022 with occupancy by late 2023. The apartments will range from 1,000 to 3,000 square feet, with each unit offering 10-foot ceilings, a corner view and a large terrace. The Tramont will also offer amenities such as a concierge service and gated and covered parking, as well as a gym, yoga studio and heated lap pool. D&A previously announced it is also redeveloping a Class-A office building on the same Arlington Avenue campus. 917-970-0760
Southern Research, 2000 Ninth Ave. S., recently announced plans for a new facility on its Birmingham campus that will be located on the site of Quinlan Castle, a long-vacant apartment building constructed in the 1920s. Independent architects and structural engineers determined the iconic structure was unsafe, too costly to repair and unsuitable for modern lab space, according to a news release from the company. Southern Research received approval Nov. 17 from the Design Review Committee of the city of Birmingham to demolish the castle. This will allow Southern Research to build a facility that will double its Biosafety Level 3 lab space for research on infectious diseases and expand commercial wet lab space by 60,000 square feet. The company also plans to hire more than 100 new scientists. 205-581-2000
News and Accomplishments
Helen, 2013 Second Ave. N., — a contemporary Southern grill owned and operated by Chef Rob McDaniel and his wife, Emily McDaniel — was recently named to the Best New Restaurants in America 2021 list compiled by Esquire magazine. Helen placed No. 3 on a list of 40 eateries. Esquire writer Joshua David Stein praises items such as the restaurant’s 22-ounce, dry-aged Kansas City strip steak drizzled with duck fat. 205-438-7000
REV Birmingham, 5529 First Ave. S, recently published a new report, “The Value of Downtown Birmingham.” The report uses data gathered over the last year to establish a baseline from which city and business leaders and other organizations can track growth and identify priorities for downtown improvements, according to the REV website. The report compares downtown Birmingham to the whole city and region, plus other downtowns across the country. “The Value of Downtown Birmingham” is presented by PNC Bank and was prepared in partnership with downtown property owners and the International Downtown Association. “We’ve seen much momentum in downtown Birmingham over the past decade, and this report gives us the data to back up what we were already feeling: Downtown has more opportunities,” REV Birmingham President and CEO David Fleming said. 205-324-8797
Birmingham Business Alliance, 505 20th St. N., Suite 200, recently announced it’s launching a program for small businesses to help curate a marketplace between buyers and suppliers. Funded by the recently created Prosper Birmingham coalition, Small Business Advisory Services will work with a series of cohorts over six- to eight-month periods with the goal of serving 250 companies and creating 1,300 direct jobs over the next five years, according to a news release from The Alliance. The program will help prepare local companies to do business with the region’s largest employers. 205-324-2100
Knight Eady, 101 12th St. S., Suite 100, — a Birmingham event, strategy and creative agency focused on sports — recently announced it will partner with Hibbett | City Gear to present the Birmingham Corporate Challenge at the West Homewood Athletic Center from May 19-21, according to a news release from the company. The event focuses on health and wellness while promoting friendly competition and employee camaraderie. At least 50 Birmingham corporations will go head-to-head in field day-style events such as Bradley’s Tug-of-War, Avient Glasform’s 40-Yard-Dash and McLeod Software’s corn hole tournament. Businesses will compete against other businesses of similar size, and the company with the most points in its respective division will be the winner. 205-791-7427
The Economic Development Partnership of Alabama, 1320 First Ave. S., had its Alabama Launchpad Cycle 3 Finale online Nov. 17, and two startup companies won a combined $75,000 in non-dilutive funding, according to a EDPA news release. Mealvana — the first product of startup Milkman — won the concept stage competition with a $25,000 prize. Milkman is building technologies to enable digitization, personalization and optimization for future food retail to help people eat healthy and save time. Mealvana brings that to life as an app allowing for easier meal planning, what the founders like to call “Netflix for recipes.” CAVU claimed the seed stage prize of $50,000. The Birmingham-based company — and Alabama’s first benefit corporation — helps businesses and people by making training, coaching and community accessible through their dedicated social learning platform. Alabama Launchpad has now funded 106 Alabama startups since its inception. 205-943-4700
The ZeroZero Foundation, based in Birmingham and founded in 2020, seeks to increase the opportunities for young people to get involved in the sports industry. The foundation announced in November it would seek to raise $50,000 by the end of 2021 to support three key goals — to equip, endorse and empower. Donations will help provide the equipment young people need to participate in youth sports. Supporters can also endorse a ZeroZero participant by providing the funds needed to participate in sports programs, camps and clinics. Through the empower pillar, the campaign will support ZeroZero’s higher education scholarship fund.
Alabama entrepreneur LaKisha Cargill, who is launching the Real Inspiring Black Sista (RIBS) apparel company, won $5,000 in the YWCA USA WE360 Virtual Pitch Competition on Nov. 24, according to a news release from YWCA Central Alabama, 309 23rd St. N. Women’s Empowerment 360, or WE360, is a national YWCA program designed to help entrepreneurs who are women or women of color. Cargill plans to use her prize money to hire a graphic designer and a brand and content strategist for social media. Her goal is to officially launch RIBS in February. Cargill is the third YWCA Central Alabama WE360 participant chosen to pitch in the national contest for women starting or leveling up their businesses. On July 21, Cassandra King, known as Comedienne Joy — the owner of Eat. Drink. Ride Food Tours — won $7,000 when she brought home second place. Yawntreshia Coleman, owner of Magic City Food Tours and Luxury Picnics, was to promote her business to judges Dec. 8. 205-322-9922
Dr. Jeffrey Kerby, director of the Division of Trauma and Acute Care Surgery at the Heersink School of Medicine at the University of Alabama at Birmingham, 1670 University Blvd., was recently confirmed by the American College of Surgeons as the next chair of the ACS Committee on Trauma, according to UAB News. Kerby is a prolific researcher with a focus on trauma, critical care and emergency general surgery. 205-975-8884
Fodor’s, the famed publisher of travel guides, has named the Theatre District in Birmingham as one of the top places to go in the Southeast in 2022. Birmingham “is home to multiple, century-old, restored theaters – –showcasing everything from nationally touring bands to classic films to America’s unique Jazz heritage,” according to Fodor’s online report. The article mentions The Alabama Theatre, The Lyric Theatre and The Carver Theatre, now known as the Carver Performing Arts Center.
Personnel Moves
Urban Impact, 1721 Fourth Ave. N., Suite 102, a nonprofit community and economic development agency, recently announced an updated list of its staff members: Ivan W. Holloway, executive director; Carla Youngblood, CPA, operations director; Darryl Washington, MPPM, district development director; Elijah E. Davis, program director; Jae Bryant, communications coordinator; and Ashley Manora, MPA, district development coordinator. On Nov. 15, Urban Impact also began taking applications for its new IMPACT Loan Fund, which will offer a revolving, low-interest loan pool to support current and new small business owners in the city of Birmingham, including the Historic 4th Avenue Business District and the Civil Rights District, according to a news release from the organization. Urban Impact will offer a series of products ranging from from $500 to $25,000 to qualifying women and minority small business owners. 205-328-1850
Mayor Randall Woodfin announced Nov. 19 that he had appointed veteran journalist and communicator Marie Sutton as the city of Birmingham’s public information officer. Sutton will serve as a senior communications official in the Office of Public Information, interacting with the public and news media. Sutton assumed her duties Nov. 22. She replaced current Public Information Officer Chanda Temple, who is now a senior project manager in the Mayor’s Office. 205-254-2000
EXIT Realty Birmingham, 2808 Seventh Ave. S., Suite 111, announced Nov. 29 that Tamika Gaines, Eric Parsons, Aaliyah Williams, Antwone Henry and Ebonie Brown have joined its team of real estate sales professionals at its Lakeview office. 205-202-2747
Regions, headquartered at 1900 Fifth Ave. N. and with multiple branches throughout the city, announced Brad Kimbrough will retire Feb. 28 following a nearly 29-year career at the bank, the last 14 of which he has served as controller and chief accounting officer. Kimbrough will be succeeded as controller by Anil Chadha, a 20-year banking industry veteran who joined Regions in 2011 and currently serves as head of risk shared services and analytics.Chadha will lead the bank’s broader controller group, which includes Karin Allen, who has been elevated by Regions to serve as assistant controller and chief accounting officer. In addition, James Eastman of the controller group has been named assistant controller and will manage business unit controller functions. Jon Harden will continue as accounting and treasury operations manager.
The Blue Cross Blue Shield Association in Chicago recently announced that Tim Vines, president and chief executive officer of Blue Cross and Blue Shield of Alabama, has been elected chair of the BCBSA Board of Directors. As chair, Vines will assume leadership of the governing body that provides strategic guidance and oversight for a national federation of 35 independent, community-based and locally operated Blue Cross and Blue Shield companies that provide health care coverage, according to a news release. A 27-year Blue Cross and Blue Shield of Alabama veteran, Vines was appointed president and CEO in 2018. Blue Cross and Blue Shield of Alabama is headquartered in Birmingham.